ARBITRATION BEFORE ACTION

By PROFESSOR GEORGE G. WILSON.

"The League to Enforce Peace has a platform consisting of four articles. These provide, briefly: (1) for the settlement of justiciable questions by a judicial tribunal, (2) for the submission of other questions to a council of conciliation, (3) for joint use by the signatory powers of both economic and military forces against any member of the League that goes to war without first submitting its cause to the Judicial tribunal, or the council of conciliation, and (4) for conferences for the formulation and codification of international law.

"Up to the present time one of the problems in securing the observance of international agreements, and the fulfillment of international obligations, has been the maintenance of an effective sanction. In early times many treaties aimed to obtain a sanction by calling upon deity to witness the contract, which was then called sacred. Often, a few years later, this sanction was not found sufficient to deter rulers from action contrary to the treaty, if policy seemed to make such action advantageous. The League to Enforce Peace aims to provide such sanction as will prevent hostilities, until resort has been had to a judicial tribunal or a council of conciliation, as a it has been found that mere recommendation that such a course be followed is not sufficient.

"The disturbance of the peace of the world before this resort to pacific consideration of a question, is regarded as a matter of such grave importance as to be no longer tolerated, and against such action the League would use its economic and military forces.

"The platform of the League does not, as some have said, propose 'gratuitous interference in differences between states,' but proposes to prevent hostile acts or was between its members, until resorts has been had to other approved methods of settling by pacific means the international controversies. In order that the rules in accord with which the court may act, shall be clear, provision is also made for conferences to formulate these rules.

"Ex-President Taft said at the opening meeting: 'We are modest in our hopes, but that is no reason for thinking that we cannot accomplish that we recommend."